Xàbia Sostenible

19/06/2026

An AC or a tree?

Neither is a perfect solution, yet the tree provides so many other benefits - they're worth protecting!

Cada aparato de aire acondicionado enfría una habitación. Y calienta la calle de los demás.

El aire acondicionado no destruye calor: lo mueve. Toma energía térmica del interior y la expulsa al exterior, más el calor adicional generado por su propio compresor. Cada unidad en marcha hace la calle un poco más caliente.

A escala de barrio, el efecto es medible. La Agencia Internacional de la Energía estima que el aire acondicionado contribuye entre 0,5 y 2°C a las temperaturas ambiente urbanas en ciudades con alta dependencia del frío artificial. En Madrid, Sevilla y Zaragoza — donde los picos de calor superan los 40°C con creciente frecuencia — el efecto combinado de miles de unidades exteriores agrava las temperaturas nocturnas, cuando más se necesita el alivio.

Hay una dinámica en cascada: un patio o callejón que ventila naturalmente las viviendas contiguas pierde ese flujo en el momento en que se instala una sola unidad exterior. Los vecinos se calientan más, instalan sus propias unidades, y el ciclo continúa.

Un árbol funciona en sentido contrario.

A través de la evapotranspiración, convierte energía solar en v***r de agua — enfriando el aire sin liberar calor residual. Un árbol maduro puede transpirar entre 190 y 380 litros de agua al día, con un efecto de refrigeración que alcanza a toda la manzana, no solo a una habitación.

Plantar árboles en las orientaciones sur y oeste de los edificios reduce la demanda punta de refrigeración entre un 25 y un 40% según estudios de eficiencia energética en edificación. La sombra sobre una fachada es aislamiento que se paga solo cada verano. 🌳

19/06/2026

Javea is prone to droughts. There are some easy steps to take to keep moisture in the soil, to protect your trees, shrubs, and crops.

Do you use wood chips for mulch? Would you, if it was available plentifully?

A drought can slowly creep up upon us.

And 30% of EU territory is affected by water scarcity every year.

Globally up to 50% of rangelands - vast natural open spaces covering half of the Earth's land surface, and sustaining over 2 billion people - are now degraded or at risk ⚠️🚨

On this , the EU calls for high ambition at the UN Convention to Combat Desertification in Mongolia to:

🌱 strengthen synergies between the 3 Rio Convention COPs: climate, biodiversity, desertification
🌱 agree on a solid budget to implement the decisions of the parties at the COP
🌱 strengthen of the implementation of the UNCCD
🌱 increase the involvement of civil society organizations and the private sector
🌱 increase gender balance

Because desertification, land degradation and droughts are global problems - and need a global response.

More: https://link.europa.eu/dBjPjK

19/06/2026

Many Xabian street trees are showing signs of drought stress this summer. We should care for them as best we can, before they have to be replaced!

Here's why:

Antes de talar un árbol urbano maduro para ensanchar un carril, mide la temperatura sobre las dos banquetas. 🌳

Un árbol urbano maduro puede bajar la temperatura local entre 4 y 8°C durante el verano mediante la evapotranspiración. Esa diferencia se traduce en miles de pesos de gasto energético evitado — por cada edificio, cada verano, durante décadas.

En todo México, árboles maduros se retiran cada año para obras viales, remodelaciones de plazas y estacionamientos, y luego se reemplazan con arbolitos de vivero que pueden tardar 30 años en ofrecer los mismos beneficios ambientales.

Los números que ningún proyecto de tala incluye en el cálculo:
— Un árbol maduro puede absorber hasta 22 kg de CO₂ al año. Un arbolito recién plantado captura a menudo menos de 2 kg
— Las raíces de árboles consolidados estabilizan el suelo y reducen el escurrimiento durante las lluvias intensas — un servicio cada vez más valioso con el aumento de eventos extremos
— El costo de retiro y reemplazo de un árbol maduro supera con frecuencia el de un mantenimiento ordinario de varias décadas
— Las islas de calor urbano pueden sumar cientos de pesos a la factura de luz de una familia cada verano

Un árbol de 50 años no puede ser sustituido por uno de 3. Se pierde, y la sociedad debe esperar medio siglo para que esos beneficios regresen.

Antes de talar uno, calcula el valor de lo que no se puede volver a comprar. 🌿

29/05/2026

🌳😌🌇The cooling power of trees starts with shade.

When surfaces like pavement, rooftops and buildings are exposed to direct sunlight, they absorb and store heat, releasing it back into the air long after the sun goes down. Trees interrupt that process. They shade sidewalks, streets and people, preventing surfaces from heating up in the first place. They also cool the surrounding air through evapotranspiration, the release of water v***r from leaves.

Together, shade and evapotranspiration allow trees to provide cooling at multiple scales at once — from lowering neighborhood air temperatures to reducing surface heating to easing hyperlocal thermal stress. This all makes outdoor conditions more bearable during the hottest months of the year and reduces heat-induced illness and mortality.

Learn more about the cooling potential of urban trees➡️ https://go.wri.org/cool-trees-fb

26/05/2026

🌱In Johannesburg, invasive plants have degraded areas around the city’s Jukskei River.

Pines, black wattle, eucalyptus, bugweed and other invasives monopolize nutrients and outcompete local flora.

They also worsen flooding, especially in Johannesburg’s riverside informal settlements like Alexandra and Soweto. Invasive plants’ roots push out deeper-rooted indigenous species, destabilizing the soil around riverbanks. When rain hits these riverbanks, loose soil and sediment flow into the river, reducing its ability to absorb and slow floodwaters.

Aggressive invasive roots also damage drainage pipes and culverts, multiplying flood impacts. Shifts in climate and rainfall patterns are further exacerbating the problem: as temperatures increase, invasives thrive, densify and spread.

Working with local communities, initiatives like WRI’s SUNCASA project are removing invasive plants to prevent flooding and loss of biodiversity while supporting livelihoods. So far, the project has cleared invasive plants from more than 133 hectares along the Jukskei’s riverbanks while creating more than 100 jobs in the process. Workers are also reintroducing indigenous species like African olive and white stinkwood. The trees’ sturdy roots will stabilize the Jukskei’s riverbanks, increase local biodiversity and reduce the impact of flooding.

Johannesburg is also developing a Transformative Riverine Management Program, a framework and business model for investors and corporations to get involved in rehabilitating the city’s rivers, starting with the Jukskei.

From Kinshasa to Dire Dawa, cities across Africa are discovering that wetlands, trees and parks could be their strongest defense against climate change. Learn more: https://go.wri.org/africa-nbs-fb

12/05/2026

Which of these features would you like to see in Javea?

Urban canopies and green corridors for shade and wind protection come to mind, as well as rain gardens that can host birds and insects.

🏢🌿Nature-based solutions have a lot to offer cities, like:

☀️Reduced extreme heat
💧Improved water security
🌱New green jobs

Through a combination of upland foresting and urban greening, watershed restoration efforts are already starting to deliver positive results in three African cities➡️ https://bit.ly/3PanrJu

12/05/2026

Could Xabia do more to encourage infiltration and percolation of rainwater into its groundwater?

We think mulch can go a long way in slowing down water, preventing erosion, maintaining soil moisture, and building up soil organic content - all great things for the environment and people!

🌊 SWAT Hydrological Modeling Explained

In hydrology, understanding how water moves across a watershed is essential for flood studies, drought analysis, soil erosion control, water resource management, and agricultural planning.

One of the most widely used tools for this purpose is SWAT.

SWAT stands for Soil and Water Assessment Tool. It is a hydrological model used to simulate how water, sediment, nutrients, and land management practices affect a watershed over time.

In simple terms, SWAT helps answer questions like:

💧 How much rainfall becomes runoff?
🌱 How does land use affect water flow?
🌊 How much water reaches rivers and reservoirs?
🏞️ Where is soil erosion more likely to occur?
🌾 How do agricultural practices influence water quality?

To run a SWAT model, several important data sources are needed:

1️⃣ DEM / Elevation Data
Used to define terrain, slopes, drainage direction, and watershed boundaries.

2️⃣ Land Use / Land Cover Data
Used to understand how forests, agriculture, urban areas, and bare soil influence runoff and infiltration.

3️⃣ Soil Data
Important for estimating infiltration, water storage, percolation, and erosion potential.

4️⃣ Weather Data
Includes rainfall, temperature, solar radiation, wind speed, and humidity. These variables control the hydrological cycle.

5️⃣ Stream Network
Used to represent rivers, drainage systems, and channel routing.

6️⃣ Management Practices
Includes irrigation, fertilization, crop rotation, and land management activities.

SWAT divides a watershed into sub-basins, then into smaller units called HRUs — Hydrological Response Units. These HRUs combine land use, soil type, and slope to simulate hydrological behavior more accurately.

The model can simulate several key processes:

🌧️ Rainfall
🏞️ Surface runoff
💧 Infiltration
🌱 Evapotranspiration
🌊 Groundwater flow
🪨 Sediment transport
🌾 Nutrient movement
🏞️ River and reservoir response

The main outputs of SWAT include streamflow, runoff, sediment yield, soil moisture, groundwater recharge, evapotranspiration, and water quality indicators.

This makes SWAT very useful for:

🌊 Flood risk studies
☀️ Drought analysis
🌍 Climate change impact assessment
🏞️ Watershed management
🌱 Soil erosion control
🌾 Agricultural water planning
💧 Water quality monitoring
🛰️ GIS-based hydrological analysis

A typical SWAT workflow includes:

1. Collecting input data
2. Delineating the watershed
3. Defining sub-basins and HRUs
4. Running the simulation
5. Calibrating and validating the model
6. Analyzing results for decision-making

💡 In short:
SWAT helps us understand how water moves through a watershed and how climate, soil, land use, and human activities influence hydrological response.

It is a powerful bridge between GIS, hydrology, agriculture, climate science, and environmental decision-making.

17/02/2026

The science is clear. Changes are taking place. Are we preparing accordingly?

Updated climate indicators with 2025 data

Looking for visualisations of a range of climate indicators?

Examples include a graphic showing changes in global CO₂, temperature, and sea level over the last 2000 years.

All these point in one direction: the climate is changing, and the rapid changes started after the steam engine was invented and society started using fossil fuels to generate heat and power on an industrial scale.

All downloadable at Climate Visuals.

https://ed-hawkins.github.io/climate-visuals/indicators.html

16/02/2026

You don't need to become vegan or even vegetarian to lower your food's climate impact.

Simply lowering your intake of beef (for example, by saving it for special occassions) can make a substantial impact!

💪You're probably hearing more and more about protein. While the right amount is much debated, one overlooked aspect is the toll protein sources take on the planet.

🫘Here's the good news: High protein doesn't have to come at a high climate cost. For example, beans, lentils, soy, nuts, and seeds are not only great sources of protein but also typically more affordable.

🥦Learn more about plant protein: https://go.wri.org/plant-protein-fb

20/01/2026

Who can join on February 8th to help reforest an area in Granadella? Email [email protected] to sign up.

El pròxim 8 de febrer celebrem el Dia de l’Arbre amb una jornada de reforestació a la Granadella, en una zona afectada per l’últim incendi.
👉 Punt de trobada: 8.30 h a l’Avda. Palmela (parking d’autobús).
Uneix-te i ajuda’ns a cuidar el nostre entorn natural 🌱

📩 Inscripció: [email protected]

___________

El próximo 8 de febrero celebramos el Día del Árbol con una jornada de reforestación en la Granadella, en una zona afectada por el último incendio.
👉 Punto de encuentro: 8:30 h en la Avda. Palmela (parking de autobuses).
Participa y colabora en la recuperación de nuestro entorno natural 🌱

📩 Inscripción: [email protected]

________

On February 8th, we celebrate Tree Day with a reforestation activity in La Granadella, helping to restore an area affected by the last wildfire.
👉 Meeting point: 8:30 a.m. at Avda. Palmela (bus parking).
Join us and help protect our natural environment 🌱

📩 Registration: [email protected]